They say writing is a lonely profession.
Do you find that to be true?
Are you isolated from the bustling world outside your window?
A prisoner of your own imagination?
(Follow the link in the photo for a little Greek travel nostalgia on the Acropolis.
Do you wonder what happened to your carefree life when you actually had time for people who weren’t imaginary?
I mean, do you find yourself talking to your cat or dog more than to your friends?
Worse!
Do you talk more to yourself than your cat or dog?
(Follow the link in the photo for some lonely Hungarian gypsy music.)
Despair not!
We have the solution to your problem.
Write as a Team!
You see?
They found each other.
And the future looks brighter already.
Whether it’s a husband and wife team, like ours.
Or best friends with a passion for telling stories.
Or mothers and sons.
Brothers and sisters.
Even simply soulmates who see eye-to-eye.
Writing together is a winning combination.
Think about it.
No more long hours in a silent room, staring at an empty computer screen.
No more sleepless nights wondering where to take your plot next.
No more boring your friends with the joys and sorrows of your creative journey.
Keep it in the family.
And I use the term loosely. Because, when you write together, you quickly become so interconnected it’s as though you were born twins.
Wait, you say!
I see a divorce on the horizon.
I can’t even agree on what to have for dinner.
No way could I expose my most cherished creative ideas to the critical eye of someone else.
However close our relationship.
I’m not sure I even trust my cat to be supportive.
How in the world do you do it?
Julia and George are here to reveal their secret.
Julia
We’ve been working together ever since we met in college, fell for each other in a big way, and started living together.
Back then our passion was theater. No matter where we were, we constantly tossed ideas back and forth about what plays we were going to produce when we started our own theater.
George had some pretty big ideas.
If I look a bit skeptical, it’s probably because I’m wondering where we’re going to get the money for this fabulous project.
We worked part-time jobs and spent anything extra on whatever production we were doing.
Needless to say, we didn’t have a savings account.
The usual plight of those crazy young people who want to be in “The Arts!”
But we didn’t care because we were doing it together.
Did I say working as a team meant talking stuff over?
Boy! Did we talk stuff over. A lot!
We talked while driving in the car.
No matter what the weather.
Working at those part time jobs.
No matter how precarious.
At dinner.
This was a dinner to celebrate finding a free venue for our first production.
Even in the shower.
So, when we decided years later to write fiction, we just naturally did it together! The family that works together stays together!
George
For us, writing is 24/7. You read about how a lot of writers sit down and write for a set period of time.
We find that ideas come to us at all times. It’s not something you can turn off. Until the book is done, of course.
Maybe not even then.
I keep a pad and paper next to the bed because my best ideas come to me in the middle of the night.
Or just before I got to sleep. Or just before I wake up.
At times, it gets annoying because I can’t even get a good night’s sleep.
I’m being pursued by characters, plots, red herrings . . .
Talk about nightmares!
Julia
George is the plot man. His head is overflowing with so many plots it’s sometimes hard to choose which one to focus on.
And when we finally do settle on a basic plot, he starts in with the twists and turns and intricate devices.
It’s really crazy at times. But such fun!
Do you have someone whose imagination overflows with plots?
Cherish that person if you do.
Their imagination will inspire yours.
George
Julia is the one who brings our characters to life.
She sits at the computer, staring at the blank screen for hours.
Until our characters begin to speak and move.
Sometimes she walks around the house talking like them.
A little weird.
But it works.
Julia
After we’ve outlined the novel, we work chapter by chapter.
Because we’ve never gotten the theater out of our blood, we look at chapters as scenes.
To paraphrase Shakespeare – our characters make their entrances and exits, and two authors, in their time, play many parts.
This, of course, is an actor’s dream come true.
Finally! We get to play
ALL THE PARTS!
George
After Julia has a first draft of a chapter, we start working together on the re-writing.
And discussing.
And re-writing.
And discussing.
Well, you get the picture.
And this process goes on for each chapter.
Why wait to have a first draft of the entire book when you can drive yourself crazy chapter by chapter?
Julia
When all the chapters have been gone over until our eyes have crossed, we start the marathon of editing the entire book.
George edits a chapter.
Then I edit the same chapter.
Then we do it all over again.
And again.
Until we’re happy with it.
In the end, we look on our finished manuscript as a 250 (or so) page play.
We hope we’ve created an intriguing stage for our actor/characters to perform their parts.
We strive to keep the pace of each chapter, and the entire novel, moving in time with the movement of the plot.
And also give our actor/characters room to express themselves.
And rein them in
when they start to
Ham it Up!
Trust me.
It happens!
In novels
just like in the theater.
Now wait just a minute!
I hear you say.
This whole thing sounds like a fairytale.
A walk down the primrose path.
No two people can work that closely together on something so personal as a novel and never disagree.
You’re right, of course.
To be perfectly honest, We don’t always see eye-to-eye on everything.
We Quibble over Lines.
Julia: He would never say that!
George: No. He’d say something much more cynical.
Julia: Actually, I don’t think he should say anything at all. Just smile.
George: Smile!? There’s a dead body at his feet.
Julia: Yes. Smile. Cynically, of course.
Cross Swords on
Character Actions.
Maybe not literally cross swords
Although . . .
We did take fencing once.
Battle over
Plot Changes
Hmm!
We always seem to make a joke out of everything.
Don’t we?
In the end
We always make peace
And harmony reigns.
Are we still together?
You bet we are!
Who would willingly give up
Such a fun time
As This?
